Page 96 of Imperfect Player

“Clearly.” I make my way to the door. I pause and turn back to him. I’m here because I care, but I’m also here for work. With Tripp out of town, this is my job. He’s my job. “Don’t worry. I’ll cover for you with the athletic company.”

“I’ll be fine for your little photo shoot tomorrow.”

“It’s today, Ethan. It’s in an hour. And you aren’t fine enough to do a damn thing.”

“No. I . . . Fuck.”

“Call me when you’re ready to quit pushing me away,” I say before walking through the door and slamming it behind me.

Like a fool, I wait a moment, hoping he’ll follow, that he’ll try to stop me.

When he doesn’t, I break down. My body slides down the wall to the floor and I sob. I stay there, just like that, until there are no more tears to cry. Then I straighten myself up and walk out of the building, refusing to make eye contact with Thurston but keeping my head high.

I have to be calm. I have to collect myself.

Not only is this personal. Not only did he break my heart. This is business. Right now, I need to take care of business. Make the call, Everly. Just make it because there is no fixing this.

“Hey, girl,” Yolanda’s perky voice says when she answers the phone.

“Hi.”

“Uh-oh.”

“Yeah, I don’t have great news,” I tell her.

“He bailed.”

“No. No, not at all. He’s sick.” It’s not the God’s honest truth, but it’s not a lie either. Ethan is sick, it’s just not the stomach bug that I’m going to tell her he has. “I just left him, and he looks like death. I had to force him not to come.”

The entire time that I speak and make up excuses for him, I hope to hell that she’s buying it, that she doesn’t see through my lie.

“It must have been something he ate on the plane or at the airport. I don’t know. But it hit him hard and fast and . . . ”

My own stomach churns at the lie I’m telling.

“He promises he’ll make it up to you and that he’ll cover the cost for today, so no worries there.”

“Be straight with me, Everly. Is he bailing on the company? We’re small, I get it, but—”

“No. He isn’t. He wouldn’t do that. I promise.”

She blows out a sigh of relief.

“I will call you tomorrow with a reschedule date.”

“Tomorrow,” she says, before disconnecting the call.

Hopefully, he’ll sober up by then.

Chapter 27

Ethan

I’m sitting in Coach’s office, head hung, listening to him shout at me. I have no choice but to take it. If I want to play, I have to do this. I have to suffer the consequences of my actions.

If he only knew how warranted they were.

He’s going on and on about how shitty I’ve been playing, how I can’t miss practices, how I’m letting the whole team down.

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